Radiator inlet valve



July 22, 1958 E. H. sroNlcl-i Erm. 2,844,324

RADIATOR INLET VALVE Filed June 27, 1952 United States Patent U RADIATOR INLET VALVE c Elwood H. Stonich, Chicago, and Edward B. Moore, Laj

Grange Park,`lll., assignors to Vapor Heating Corporation, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Delaware Application .lune 27, 1952, Serial No. 295,987

2 claims. (ci. zzn-73)' This invention relates to an improved valve structure p 2,844,324 Patented July `22, 1958 6-6 of Fig. 2,` the valve parts being illustrated on a which is particularly suitable for controlling the admis sion of heating medium, for example steam, into la heat radiator of a space heating system.

A principal object of the invention is to provide an improved Valvestructure in which a valve element is pivotally attached to an operating stem so that when the stem is out of alignment with the center of the admission port, the valve will assume an angular position so as t'o.

compensate for such malalignment of the stem and thereby insure positive closure of the inlet port.

A further object is to provide -a valve of the above character which is so formed as to proportionately lvaryI l `admission port leading to a steam-radiator and to also provide the said valve element with a groove in one side, communicating with a circular groove extending around the valve so as to vinsure a steam passage of adequate area to prevent'vibration lof the valve when it is adjusted to only a slightly open position'.

Another object is to provide, in a radiator admission valve of the above character, a valve housing formed to provide a unitary fitting provided with inlet and outlet passages communicating with vthe radiator and provided in the outlet passage with a'removable oritice'tting, whereby the outlet passage is restricted in relation to the size of the radiator so as to permit the outlet passage to remain constantly open to discharge condensate without the discharge of substantial amounts of steam. The outlet passage is also arranged in close relation to the steam inlet passage so as to receive heat therefrom and thereby prevent freezing of condensate being discharged.

Another feature of the invention is the provision of a pair of readily removable tubular screens one of which surrounds the admission valve port so as to prevent the admission of scale or other foreign matter into the radiator inlet port and the other screen surrounding the orice tting to prevent scale or foreignl matter entering the restricted outlet opening of the said orice fitting.

Another object is to provide improved means for packing the valve so as to provide constant sealing pressure to prevent leakage aro-und the valve stem `and which also f simplifies the installation of the packing and prevents unwarranted tampering therewith.y

The invention is illustrated, in certain preferred embodiments, in the accompanying drawing wherein:

Fig. 1 is a top View in elevation of the improved valve structure and a portion of a space heating element;

Fig. 2 is a vertical section through the structure shown in Fig. 1, the section being taken on line 2 2 thereof;

Fig. 3 is a transverse section taken through Fig. 2 substantially on line 3 3 to illustrate the position of the outlet orifice fitting;

larger scale than that of Fig. 2L

' The valve structure includes a main body element 1li, a bonnet 11 enclosing an operating stem 12 and a valve seat elementV 13 K4for cooperating 'with a valve element 14 secured to the stem.` The bonnet 1'1 has a threaded engagement with the main body and cooperates with a portion of the main lbody to deline an inlety chamber 15 for receivingcsteam from a supply passage 16. A partition ywall 17 separates the inlet. chamber 15 from a delivery chamber 18. The valve seat element 13 is threaded into an" opening in said partitionwall 17 and is provided with a cylindrical `bore 21 defining an admission port leading from the chamber 15 into the deliverycharnber .18. Thesteam delivery chamber is dened-by lan internally threaded cylindrical portion 22 and has direct 'communication with the receiving end of a radiator v23.

Thev effective area of the admission port 21 is controlled by the valve element 14. This element is tapered'toward its outer end andis slidably supp-ortedfwithin the admisp sion port 21 so that the volume of heatingmedium pass,

ing through port *21, may be proportionately varied throughout: the entire'travel ofthe valve element 14. When the valve eleinentfis in a position to close the port 21 a conical portion 2? of" the valve `bears against the correspondingly formed surface l24 ofjthe Ivalve seat 13.

The tapered ybody portion of the valve element llis formed with a circular channel 25 extendingaround the valve element intermediate the taperedjportion 23 thereof and a portion 26 having a diameter only slightly less than the inner diameter of the port 2.1.. A groove 26a formed in the-'tapered portion of the valve element and extending' lengthwise thereof connectsjjwith the circular channel. 25 so as to provide a vpassage' ofadequate area forheatingmedium when the Valve' element 14 is `only slightly open. Theyouter vend of the valve element V1d is `loosely supported within a cylindrical socket 27 formed in the inner end ofthe valve sternl 12|and 'is loosely atltached 'to 'the stem by means of a pin-2Sl Fig. 6. The

loose fitting connection between the valve'element 14 and the valve stem is suicient to permit thevalve element 14 to assume an angular position relative to the stem and thereby insure positive closingV of the port 21 even though thel longitudinal axis of .the'valve's'tem may. be out of alignment with the longitudinal kaxis of the1 y port 21. The outer end of the valve element is curved as'indicated 'at 29 to provide a single'point thrust bearing against the bottom 30 of the said socket 27.

The' bonnet 11 includes Aa chamber 31 for containing suitable packing for the valve stem 12. The packing is preferably of the chevron type and includes a pair of metallic adapter rings 32--33 between which a plurality of compressible packing rings 34 are positioned. A coil y spring 35 is interposed between the adapter ring 33 and ber )341. The "valve stem 12, it will be observed, extends through lan opening 40 formed in the said abutment plate. Secured to the outer end of the stem 12 is a means for actuating rthe stem. This means maybe Varied to suit the situation in which the valve is employed. In the present instance the valve stern 12 is' intended to be operatedrmanually and, therefore, has a manually `operated screw element 41 secured to the outer end of the stem 12 andV has threaded engagement with an internally threaded portion 42'of the bonnet. The hand 'Wheel for operating the screw is indicated at`43.

Referring again to the radiator '23: It `is shown-herein as Icomposed of inner and outer pipes 44and 45 larranged preferably, but not necessarily, in concentric relation -to each other. The pipe 44`is threaded into the cylindrical portion 22 defining the delivery chamber 18 of the valve body. The said inner pipe 44 receives the 'steam from the delivery chamber 1S andvdischarges it into -the pipe 45 near the outer end thereof which is remote 'from the valve structure whereby the steam and condensation ows in the outer pipe toward the valve structure. The outer pipe 45 is usually provided with a plurality vof Vspaced apart fins 46 which provide extended heat radiatingsurfaces. The inner end `of the outer pipe 45 is suitably bonded or otherwise secured to the interior of a cylindrical tiange 47, the latter of which cooperates Ywith the cylindrical portion 22 of the body to define an annular space 4S. Thisrspace 48, and consequently the discharge lend of the radiator, connects with an outlet passage 49 (Fig. 37)` which, in turn,'communicat`es with an outlet chamber 50 and discharge passage 50a. The said bore 49 is `arranged at one ,side of the center of the main body element 10 and extends, 'as clearly shown in Fig. 3, from the top surface of the body to the outlet chamber 50.

The outlet end of ythe radiator is open to the atmosphere atA all times through the said bore '49, outlet chamber 50 and outlet passage 50a, but the outlet is 'restricted by means ofr-an oriiice litting 51 tted-into the bore 49 so as to permit the condensate to discharge from the system without permittingL substantial amountsofsteam to 'be discharged. l The orifice fitting 51 is in the form of a plug screwedinto the threaded upper portion S2 of the bore 49. The central lportion of the plug is -reduced in diameter so as to provide a space `S15-surrounding thev plug and the lower end of the plug is formed lwith a T-shaped restricted passage54 through which the condensation discharges into the outlet chamber 50. VIn order to prevent scale orjother foreign matter from being carried into the restricted outlet 54, 'a tubular screen 55 surrounds the reduced portion of the plug 51. The screen, it will be observed, can be removed with the plug for the purpose of cleaning, when such cleaning is desired.

As a further precaution against scale entering the valve controlled port 21, a cylindrical screen 56 is positioned in the inlet chamber 15 so as to surround the valvestem and valve element and thereby -prevent scale or other foreign matter from entering the port 21 in a manner to interfere With the proper operation of the valve.

We claim:

1. In combination with a steam heated radiator Ihaving a steam inlet end and a condensate discharge end arranged in close relation to each other, a valve structure including a housing provided Vwith portions defining steam delivery and condensate discharge passages attached to the inlet and discharge ends, respectively, of said steam heated "radiator, a va'lv'e for controlling the delivery of steam to the radiator in quantities to 'produce Condensation therein, and a 'flow Ares'tricting'plug removably positioned in said `discharge passage and provided with a continuously open discharge orifice therein of relatively small size whereby condensate collects adjacent the oriiice to `prevent the discharge of steam; a wall of the said discharge passage and the flow restricting plug being positioned in contiguous -hea`t transfer relation -to `a vWall of said steam delivery passage, 'whereby the heat from the steam in said delivery/,passage is transmitted through the said valve housing to the said :plugand to the condensate in thev discharge passage so as toV prevent freezing of the latter` in cold weather.

2. Theycombination structure defined in claim l char acterized in that said plug is formed with a portion of vreduced diameter intermediate its ends for communieating with the radiator outlet, and the said discharge oriiice is a passage o'f restricted area through a portion -of said plug and leading from the space surrounding s'aid reduced portion 'of the plug, and further characterized by the .-provisionwof a tubulanscreen surrounding the reduced lportion of said plug but spaced therefrom so as to prevent scale'and other foreign matter from blocking said discharge orifice.

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